# OTC's leaving my mouth feeling "waxy"



## SammyBirdland (Aug 23, 2010)

I'm a brand new pipe smoker, I started off with an ounce of a cherry blend from a local custom tobacco blend shop:



> Our most popular Cherry Blend. A blend of bright, red Virginia, and Black Cavendish tobaccos finished with an exclusive Cherry-Pineapple flavoring. Ordered by the ounce.


After smoking this for a few days, I was eager to try some others. I went to the local discount cigarette place and picked up a handful of OTC's -- Half & Half, Apple, Prince Edward Soft Vanilla, Captain Black White.

While experimenting with these this evening, I found most of them to taste very bland compared to the cherry blend I have. Also, my mouth now feels like it has a coating, almost a waxy sensation.

Anyone else ever get that waxy sensation from drugstore tobacco? What causes it? I figure it's either from some chemical that I'm not used to, or maybe my tongue is burnt.


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## ChronoB (Nov 4, 2007)

SammyBirdland said:


> I'm a brand new pipe smoker, I started off with an ounce of a cherry blend from a local custom tobacco blend shop:
> 
> After smoking this for a few days, I was eager to try some others. I went to the local discount cigarette place and picked up a handful of OTC's -- Half & Half, Apple, Prince Edward Soft Vanilla, Captain Black White.
> 
> ...


I haven't tried any OTC tobaccos, but I suspect they all have propylene glycol (perhaps a lot) to keep them moist. And the quality of the additives is probably not as good as you'd find in less commercial producers. I suggest you determine what you like in those blends and look for similar offerings from other brands like Mac Baren, McCelland, Cornell & Diehl, etc. If there are any tobacconists near you that specialize in (or at least pay attention to) pipe smoking some of their house blends might be good, too.


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## SammyBirdland (Aug 23, 2010)

ChronoB said:


> I haven't tried any OTC tobaccos, but I suspect they all have propylene glycol (perhaps a lot) to keep them moist.


From Wikipedia:


> Propylene glycol, also called 1,2-propanediol or propane-1,2-diol, is an organic compound (a diol or double alcohol) with formula C3H8O2 or HO-CH2-CHOH-CH3. It is a colorless, nearly odorless, clear, viscous liquid with a faintly sweet taste, hygroscopic and miscible with water, acetone, and chloroform.


Eww. :shock:


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## CWL (Mar 25, 2010)

If you also smoke cigars, you'll recognize PG as it is a common additive to water in humidifiers. PG holds it's weight equivalent in water, which is great for keeping tobacco moist, but it gets transferred to your mouth as well as deposited inside your pipes.


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## laloin (Jun 29, 2010)

that just plain gross that they add PG to OTC, and I dread what big tobacco adds to mass produced cigs
makes me glad I switch to a pipe and slowly kicking the cig habit
troy


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## mbearer (Jun 2, 2010)

Prince Albert I haven't had any problems with (I picked it up becuase it is what the wife's paternal grandfather smoked and she was begging me too.. and I have to admit I kinda like it) 

Captain Black White he used to smoke as well so I grabbed a pouch of that... It leaves my tongue and roof of my mouth feeling waxy and my tastes impaired for awhile. Plus its just a hot goopy mess all around... Sure people love the smell but it isn't worth it to me. When I first tried a pipe many years ago I tried captain black and the same results drove me away.

An aromatic that keeps the wife happy and me puffing away is Autumns Evening by C&D. MAple Syrup smell over some nice VA's quite tasty too..

Though I find more and more that Aro's are falling to the wayside but I am sure I will pick them back up again. To many things to try 
Mike


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## SammyBirdland (Aug 23, 2010)

Thanks everyone. I'm pretty sure most of my problem is that i burned my tongue. I noticed a lot of this stuff burns a lot wetter than the higher quality tobacco I started with. Not only did I steam my tongue, but I also discovered what "gurgle" is, I could hear it bubbling in the bottom of the pipe as I sipped.


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## indigosmoke (Sep 1, 2009)

_Propyline glycol is not the evil chemical that some believe it to be, but, like anything else, it can be abused, and often is in "cheap" tobaccos. Glycerin, glycerol and alcohol were widely used in the past in flavoring tobaccos. Why so much of the industry switched to PG is a question that can PROBABLY be answered by economics.

In a relatively pure state, PG is viscous, and somewhat slimy to the touch. It binds readily with water, and is often used in humidifying units in cigar humidors to maintain a fairly constant relative humidity of about 70%, considered ideal by many. It has a distinctive sweet taste and substatially lower toxicity than ethylene- and diethylene glycols, but high ingested doses have correlated with hepatic and renal diseases. Don't drink it. If your tobacco is sticky, and it won't dry out, you've probably got a good dose of PG present. It's also found in oil-free salad dressings, and a lot of cosmetics.

And, no, I don't use it, though tested samples of some ingredient leaf have shown small amounts present.

GL Pease, 2001-12-14_

Much good info on PG in pipe tobacco here:

http://www.cigarforums.net/forums/v...ycol-pg-pipe-tobacco-pro-con.html#post1440891


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## Alpedhuez55 (Dec 16, 2005)

I smoke a lot of Carter Hall. I have not noticed the waxy feeling. I think it is a great OTC. 

But some of the aromatics I have had give me that waxy off taste. But you get what you pay for in most cases. In my first attempts at pipes, I tried some of the OTC aeromatics and gave up on it for several years before picking it up again about 5 years ago. If I had stuck with either some of the store blends or tins, I probably never would have stopped.


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## dmkerr (Oct 27, 2008)

I think that as a general rule, PG is mostly in blends that require it because the container is not airtight. These containers tend to be pouches, as well as bulk bags. I've found that a pouch of Captain Black White is goopier than a large tin of same, and that general rule seems to have held pretty well over time.

The Lane bulks that came in 5 pound bags were pretty PG-soaked as well. If it's gotta stay fresh and it doesn't come in a fairly airtight container, the chances are excellent that it's been PG'd.


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## mugwump (Jun 7, 2007)

That's been the biggest strike against OTCs so far for me -- the melted plastic aftertaste and mouth feel. The one that causes the least such off-taste for me is Sir Walter Raleigh.


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## Granger (Jul 24, 2010)

SammyBirdland said:


> Thanks everyone. I'm pretty sure most of my problem is that i burned my tongue. I noticed a lot of this stuff burns a lot wetter than the higher quality tobacco I started with. Not only did I steam my tongue, but I also discovered what "gurgle" is, I could hear it bubbling in the bottom of the pipe as I sipped.


Now hold on a minute....

Don't go knocking OTCs!

Gurgle can happen with he most expensive tobacco, that is a packing and tamping issue, not a quality issue.

Many OTCs are fine, but I think part of the problem is that it sounds like you overdid it. Don't smoke too much in a day, and don't smoke too many blends in one day. I find it best to get a new blend, a new clean cob, and spend some time getting to know the new tobacco. Slow smoking and relaxing over a few of a new blend can be an experience and a tobacco can change its flavor as you get used to it and it breathes.

With any tobacco, you often need to let if breath for a few days to get the best flavor.


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## SammyBirdland (Aug 23, 2010)

Granger said:


> Now hold on a minute....
> 
> Don't go knocking OTCs!
> 
> ...


You're absolutely right. Tonight I picked one of those OTC's out and sat and relaxed and smoked it, and it was great. So this one was definitely a newbie mistake.


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## Granger (Jul 24, 2010)

SammyBirdland said:


> You're absolutely right. Tonight I picked one of those OTC's out and sat and relaxed and smoked it, and it was great. So this one was definitely a newbie mistake.


Now, I don't smoke only OTC tobacco, but I started a recent thread to admit that I have fallen in love with on...SUGAR BARREL! My first tub got better as I smoked it, but when I opened the second it wasn't nearly as good. I learned that Sugar Barrel needs to breath. Now, I don't like all OTC's, but I am developing a fondness for some of them. I find if you buy it in the tubs/large tins (Sugar Barrel is best in the 12oz Tub that you allow to breath.) Captain Black (White) when purchased in the Air Tight Can is better than the stuff in a bag. Likewise, Prince Albert, Kentucky Club, Kentucky Club Mixture, and Walnut (All John Middleton Brands like Sugar Barrel) I have bought in a 12oz Tub and found they have less of the "stuff" you don't want than the pouch versions.

And a lot of "premium" brands are mixed with tobaccos that have had _humidicant_s added along the way, so when some tobacco snobs look down their nose at an OTC, a lot of their blends have the same stuff. Part of it might just be psychosomatic. Because we think less of an OTC, we look for reasons for it to be less. I still have a shelf full of tins, air tight jars, and aging sealed jars of dozens of tobaccos I love, but for my everyday smoking friend I reach for my OTC Sugar Barrel.


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## Nurse_Maduro (Oct 23, 2008)

CWL said:


> PG holds it's weight equivalent in water, which is great for keeping tobacco moist, but it gets transferred to your mouth as well as deposited inside your pipes.


...which is why I'm adding that, should you go the route of trying non-otc 'baccy, you'll want to smoke them in a _different_ pipe than the one you're using for your otc 'baccy.

And I also agree that some OTCs are quite enjoyable...and some are less so. Check out the link in my sig for some reviews.


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## Davetopay (Jan 19, 2008)

indigosmoke said:


> _
> 
> substatially lower toxicity than ethylene- and diethylene glycols, but high ingested doses have correlated with hepatic and renal diseases. Don't drink it. I
> 
> _


Makes me have to wonder if I have a sensitivity to it, given the liver problems I suffered earlier this year.....:der:


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